Finding the Good In the Midst of Destruction

It's not something anyone expects to wake up to at 3:00 AM, but for Tom Sexton, Pastor of Cape Coral's Gulf Coast Baptist Church, the situation became very real, very quickly.

Police arrived with a knock at the door to inform him that vandals had broken into the church and wrecked havoc - leaving behind countless amounts of damage, and an incredible loss of equipment. When he asked how bad the damage was, the officers simply replied, 'it's bad'.

Pastor Sexton was astonished at what he witnessed upon arriving to the church. "Oh my goodness," was the only response he could muster, completely taken aback by the evil he saw scrawled on walls, the destruction of computers, televisions, office supplies, missionary supplies, desks, important files and more.

A rented dumpster sits outside of the church office building, filled with everything from carpeting, desks, file cabinets, TV's, computer monitors and more. What took years to accumulate and purchase was completely destroyed within an hour and a half.

"It's hard to imagine someone doing something like this. When something like this happens, it's really hard to believe. This is God's house and this happened on his day," says of Pastor Sexton during a news interview.

When members of the church showed up their children off to Sunday School in the morning, they were met with 'Do not enter' signs on the children's church door, and lots of confusion.

The vandals had destroyed the children's ministry rooms, going as far as spray painting male genitalia on the walls, urinating on rugs, and destroying the nursery.

There were shards of glass littering the floor throughout the building, and the entire building instantly became unrecognizable - and unusable.

When word got out to local news stations, they began airing the story of destruction across the airwaves and social media.

Numerous members of the community began reaching out to offer support in the way of cleanup efforts, donations of supplies, funds, and more.

All carpeting throughout the building needed to be ripped out and flooring replaced. There are precious family heirlooms belonging to Mrs. Sexton, such as pictures with her mother and china tea pots, which can't be replaced, -- lost forever.

Vic's Painting, a professional painting company located in Fort Myers, Florida, offered to repaint the walls free of charge, and has since nearly completed the work. Other painters have offered their time to work on the remaining rooms and walls, and have aided in the efforts to restore the building to working order.

Others still have created beautiful handmade signs in support of the Church's new ministry, Stand With the Blue - a ministry being launched November 1st in support of Law Enforcement Officers.

Various individuals have written e-mails to offer prayer and support, while others have stopped by dropping off donations amid tears.

The overall outpouring of love from the community - even from people who have never stepped foot inside the halls of this gospel-filled, loving church - has been incredible.

Pastor Sexton, as well as others within the church, unanimously believe that what these 3 vandals meant for evil, the Lord will use for good.

In spite of all of the physical and emotional damage, a community is coming together to bring healing - and that in and of itself is a beautiful thing.

The Pastor wants people to know that this is not how all teenagers in the area are, and that, had these young girls spent some time in his church, he believes this event would never have happened.

There have been 3 arrests related to the crime - Two 12 year old girls, and one 17 year old girl. Each of the girls is said to be spending at least 21 days in the Juvenile Detention Center located in Fort Myers, Florida. It is unclear as to what the outcome will be.

Initial estimates for the damages caused were at $20,000, and have since climbed to around $46,000. Although the number is staggering, church members are confident the majority can be accomplished via volunteer work and donations. Many church members have shown up every day since the attack happened to offer support and help wherever needed.

If you are interested in donating to the cause to help the church rebuild, you can visit the Church's GoFundMe page to give.